What's wrong with a Walmart bike?
 

Ok the anonymity of the internet (and my relative thick skin when it comes to message board flaming) lets me ask a question that I would totally be afraid to ask in real life, considering what I've read on these forums...

What's wrong with a Walmart bicycle? :eek::o

I am considering getting my first bike since I was a kid (I biked to school and back about 8 miles each way in a very hilly area all through middle school!) to commute to work and back and around the park and neighborhood with my kids (right now my oldest is on a tricycle! but I'm thinking ahead). My ride to work is about 1 mile each way of mostly flat, very low-traffic road.

I think eventually I might want to invest in a good bike, so that I can make quick trips to the grocery store or Starbucks a few miles away, and just ride for fun/exercise. I grew up in Europe and as a kid we biked just about everywhere, and I loved it. I can totally see that sometime in the future I might become a "biker" again, especially when my kids are old enough to join in.

But right now (1) we have NO extra money (many tens of thousands of dollars in medical bills for my daughter, which will hopefully be over with in about a year), (2) I'm not sure what I want in a bike or whether I'll really end up wanting to bike.

So, I'm thinking of getting this bike: http://www.walmart.com/catalog/produ...uct_id=8399245 (I know it's a men's bike, but it was comfortable for me). I read the comments on here about Walmart shoppers and how stupid we are, and how people on a $100 bike are probably too lame to know how to ride without running people over, etc. etc. so I thought I might add that I made it to the top of my law school class, and just because I'm new to biking doesn't mean I'm a moron :)

So, my question again is, what's wrong with this bike? If I know that I will most likely end up with a better bike in the near future, and I just need something to test the whole biking to work/around the neighborhood experience out with, will this bike not do the job? If not, why? Should people who don't have $1,000 to spend on a bike never ride a bicycle? I'm not asking that to be an a**, I really am curious about whether you feel like no bike is better than a cheap bike. Honestly, it would be probably four or five years before I would feel like we could set aside $1,000 (or even $500) on a bike for me, and I hate the thought that I should just give up the idea of biking to work until then. As a kid I know I rode the cheapest bike my parents could find, and it seemed okay!

Thanks!

Looks good to me. A good starter bike.
It has good reviews.
Go get it and Ride.

Performance and reliability are two things worth paying more money for, but for $124 the value of that bike is very good. Buy it, enjoy it, and forget about what anyone else thinks.

Buy it and you'll find out.

Walmart bikes are built shoddily, put together by people who could care less if the rear derailleur hits all the gears (I know this for a fact as I worked briefly at a large box store as a bicycle assembler and I was the only person in the store that could tune a derailleur, and I used to get into trouble for spending more time then everyone else on the bikes), the rims are usually warped right out of the box, the welds look terrible (on most) and the components are the lowest grade junk that they can get their hands on.

If you really want to give biking a shot I highly recommend picking up an old cruiser. Most come with racks and fenders, have components that probably won`t fail as quickly as the new plastic crap that comes out of box stores, and with a little elbow grease and a rattle can paint job will last you for years and years and years, or at least until you decide whether or not biking is for you.

The other plus side to this is that you`re giving a perfectly serviceable old bike a second life, plus you`ll have a way more unique ride than the Wally world special.

That`s just my opinion though, I`m sure there are several people here who have ridden Huffy`s for 20 years and find them to work great...

There is nothing wrong with getting a bike from Walmart...
I got my Mongoose Vanish from there and love it... it was on sale for $185... regular $275.
I must have bought the last one though since I can't find it on their site anymore...

A cheap bike is way better than no bike.
However, a decent bike from a bike shop is waaaayyyyy better than a walmart bike. Better performance and reliability.
..but if that is what you want go ahead and have fun.
Personally, I would take that cash and save up a little more to either purchase a decent used bike or low end lbs bike.

Then again it is the OP's money so do what you will.

Its association with Walmart alone is enough reason for *me* not to buy it.

If you want to ride a bike from Walmart, go ahead, I really don't care. I can tell you that a bike that costs 5 times as much will be nicer, but that should be pretty obvious, really. Wether or not it's worth the money to you is a personal decision.

If that bike was a car, it would be this one: http://tatanano.inservices.tatamotors.com/tatamotors/
Yeah, it'll drive, but it's certainly no BMW.

A question for the OP: are you mechanically competent enough to check the assembly and to make necessary adjustments?

If you have a bicycle coop in your area, go see if they have a good used bike that fits you. You'll probably spend $200 but it'll be a better bike even if it's older.

Assembly is one big problem with Walmart bikes and the other is that they use the cheapest components they can find. I'm not saying don't buy it, but do so with your eyes open. A part that on a higher quality bike would last for a decade may only last a year on the Walmart bike, but that may be long enough for you to decide if commuting is for you or not.

We used to buy Walmart or Target bikes for our kids figuring they only use them for a year or two before they grow out of them, but now we buy used instead.

For one mile, I'd get one of these at Walmart. :D


http://www.pushscooter.com/Images/ne...oter_mg_gr.jpg

I am not opposed to buying a used bike or buying a bike from somewhere else... for that same price. Walmart just had the cheapest "decent" (yes VERY relative term!) bike I could find. The problem with a used bike is that I have no idea what to look for. I live in a small enough area that our craigslist is small (only a few expensive mountain bikes and some kids bikes). It seems like it would be hard to try to look at classified ads and figure out which bikes I should try to track down and sit on, etc. If anyone has advice about the best way for someone like me (who doesn't really know anything about bikes) to find a used bike, please advise!!

Also, if assebly is an issue, would it help if I took my Walmart bike to a bike shop, or had my neighbor look at it (he is a hardcore bike rider and has offered to help teach me about bikes when I get one)?

Thanks - I can't believe how fast everyone here responds!!

My plan was to buy the bike and have my neighbor teach me about it.... I've changed the tire on my car, does that make me "mechanically competent"? :o But seriously, no I don't know anything about bikes right now. I intend to learn what I need to to ride safely (just like my daddy wouldn't let me drive a car until I knew how to jump start it and change the tires!)

One mile and you like the bike? Go for it, you can always upgrade later when your budget permits if you think you need too.

A 1 mile commute is under my threshold for cycling, so I would recommend a sturdy pair of shoes for the 15 minute trek each way.

That's what I currently do. But it's boring and I thought it would be fun to get back into biking, since I loved it so much as a kid! :)

1 mile?

Singlespeed beach cruiser.

Skateboard FTW! Except I tend to fall off skateboards.

Do you have a recommendation?

Thanks!!

These bikes are all effectively the same.

Three years ago, I was in the same situation as the OP--interested in cycling, but without the money for a bike-store bike. My dad had an old Roadmaster--originally from Wal-Mart--sitting around in his garage, gathering dust. He gave it to me, and I took it home, tinkered with it, fixed a couple of minor problems, and started riding it every day.

After thousands of miles, nothing had broken. I did have to replace the tires (which were in bad shape after sitting for years), but it provided me with good service for a long time.

Last summer, I bought new wheels, and last week I converted it to a single-speed, so I'm no longer using a lot of the original components (derailleurs, shifters, etc.) I also bought a new seat, just as a personal preference. But almost none of the original stuff wore out.

In the meantime, I've bought a couple of nicer bikes, including a recumbent and a Trek hybrid. But I still ride the old Roadmaster. It's not the finest machine out there, but it's worked fine for me.

Most of what they sell in discount stores are Bicycle-Like Objects... basically, toys shaped like bicycles.


However, the bike you picked out is actually rather nice.

It looks to be a good entry level fitness bike, or, a long-term, all-weather commuter.

For the money, you really can't go wrong.

I say, buy it, and before you ride it, take it to a bike shop. Some eighteen year old stockboy assembled that bike... And he used pliers and a 10-cent screwdriver.

Some shops used to be kind of snooty with discount store bike owners, but I have to tell you, times are tough in the retail world... Merchants are learning to be extra nice to anybody waiting to spend some money.

Have 'em go over it, adjust it, make sure the shifters index on all the gears, and the brakes don't rub the tires... They'll lube all the usual points, and you'll be pleasantly surprised when they present the bill... It won't cost much.

Plus, you'll have established yourself as a potential customer to that shop... They'll be willing to help you
if you have a problem (Wally World sure won't) and if the time comes that you want to move up to a
good bike-shop-brand, you might even get a deal on last year's models.

Also, the neighborhood around our house going the other direction (toward stores, park, etc.) is rather hilly...

IMHO - Buying anything at Walmart is a mistake. I don't care what it is.

Why not have the neighbor look at it and give you his honest opinion? If you like it, it works for you and you end up going more places than you think you will you'll be better than the person with the "better" bike that never goes anywhere. And if you buy it, like it and know what you want in a second bike, you'll be even better off still.